


a new and brighter birth

by skadthi



Series: zine pieces [1]
Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Internalized Homophobia (past), Introspection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:46:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28246389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skadthi/pseuds/skadthi
Summary: After the defeat of Formiitis, Neimi considers both her past with Colm and her future with Amelia.--My piece for the Zine Rally Spectrum!
Relationships: Amelia/Neimi (Fire Emblem)
Series: zine pieces [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2069121
Kudos: 3





	a new and brighter birth

**Author's Note:**

> I was obsessed with Amelia/Neimi at age 11 when I first played FE8, so it was an honor to write this piece for Rally Spectrum!
> 
> Check out Twitter page to see all of the other amazing Zine pieces!  
> https://twitter.com/rallyspeczine?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

It has been hours since the Demon King fell, and Neimi thinks her heart will never stop racing. 

After the battle, some of the army started celebrating, but most of them collapsed at the first opportunity to just sleep. Fighting the monsters that had plagued Magvel for so long seemed like child's play when compared to the might of Formiitis.

Neimi remembers aiming her bow directly at the Demon King, firing, and watching with horror as the wounds did nothing to even slow the monster down. She had tried so hard for so long to grow as a warrior so she could actually contribute something to help Eirika restore peace, and in the moment that it mattered the most, Neimi could do nothing.

She had felt less than worthless. It was hard to breathe with her heart stuck in her throat, hard to think with the sound of clashing blades and demonic roars all around her. The pain of her injuries and the rising, crushing hopelessness that rose in her chest almost made her fall over on her knees, but she couldn't stop. She just remembers whipping her head around, searching with an archer's gaze for Amelia, and she couldn't find her no matter where she  _ looked _ _ — _

"Hey," Amelia says, startling Neimi into the present. Amelia's finger wipes away a tear on her face, and her eyes are soft as she looks down at Neimi resting her head on her lap. "A gold coin for your thoughts?"

The trees above them sway gently in the breeze, and the only sound is that of a dozen or so soldiers celebrating their win some ways down. Any other night, it would have been peaceful.

Neimi loves Amelia more than life itself, but all the love in the world can't help her form the words to convey what she is feeling at the moment. She doesn't know how to tell Amelia about how she thinks the anxious knot in her chest may never go away, or how she may see the twisted face of Formiitis every time she closes her eyes now.

When she was a young girl, her grandfather gave her a piece of advice: "take on the world one problem at a time." And so she does.

"Before, at my village," Neimi starts. Amelia runs an encouraging hand through her hair. "Well, I think everyone is assuming I will come back with Colm."

_ If they think I'm strong enough to come back at all, _ the ugly part of Neimi's brain says to her. Wisely, she chooses not to say that part out loud, simply closing her eyes.

At Neimi's silence, Amelia prompts, "Colm?"

Neimi hums absently. "You know how it is. We're the same age, and we're friends. We both ran off together to join the war, with Lady Eirika. And y'know, Colm's a boy and I'm a girl, so."

A familiar knot begins to form in Neimi's throat, and she's glad that her eyes are closed so Amelia can't see the tears starting to form. It's so stupid. Even Neimi doesn't know why she's crying right now.

_ Stupid, stupid, stupid, _ a voice in her head says.

A finger carefully brushes under Neimi's eye, wiping away another tear that has managed to escape, and Neimi opens her eyes again. "I'm sorry," Neimi whispers. Anything louder might make the tears begin to spill again. "That probably doesn't make sense."

"No, no, it does," Amelia says, but her eyebrows are pinched together in a way that says that she doesn't understand. Her lips are pursed, the way they always are when she wants to say something but is too afraid to.

Neimi takes a deep breath and says slowly, as to not jumble her words again, "Colm is my best friend. But I don't love him. Not now, and not ever."

She thought she did, once. Back before she had ventured out into the world, and all she knew was what she had been taught in her tiny village. There weren't many kids her age. The ones who Neimi could have been friends with didn't know what to do with her tendency to cry at the drop of the hat or the way that she stumbled and tripped over her words.

But then one day Colm was there, nearly pierced by her grandfather's arrow. He thought Neimi was a bumbling idiot — he told her so often — but he looked at her and talked with her. He didn't ignore Neimi every time she tried to speak with him. 

As they grew up, the older women in the town would give Neimi sly glances while talking about Colm. They told her he was just pulling her pigtails, and Neimi believed them because they were older and wiser.

That meant that Colm liked Neimi, romantically. It was difficult for her to think about. In the story books she read as a child, the prince always swooped in with honeyed words and sweet affection for his bride. Colm pushed her down and told her she was a crybaby for being sad at her ruined dress. When she brought it up with her grandfather, he told her that men showed affection oddly when they really care about a girl, so the idea that Colm really, truly had a crush on her started to stick.

Neimi tried to envision herself as Colm's wife, and she reasoned that her own immaturity explained away the nausea and sadness that came with the thought.

And then her grandfather passed away, and then she and Colm stumbled upon Princess Eirika's army, and then, and then —

Neimi met Amelia.

She was scary at first, like most people were to Neimi, but then they started talking. Long conversations under moonlight about their families, how they both loved michew pie, the struggle of being a young woman in this army, and then it seemed like she and Amelia had known each other for ages.

One night, after a particularly gruesome battle, Amelia had shuffled closer and whispered, "Can I kiss you?" Neimi said yes with a steady voice and absolutely no tears in her eyes.

Kissing Amelia makes Neimi feel the same way she does when she holds her bow in her hands. She feels strong and powerful, ready to stand up to anything. Before Amelia, Neimi didn't know that it was possible to feel too confident, like nothing in the world could stop her as long as they were together.

Amelia is the best person Neimi has ever met, and it would break her heart to return to her tiny village and face scorn and jeers as they saw Neimi returning home hand in hand with not only a person from Grado, but with a  _ woman _ .

One problem at a time, her grandfather had said, but that's easier said than done when you don't know how to solve any of the problems at hand.

"I'm sorry," Neimi whispers. "That was a stupid thing to say."

"Not at all," Amelia responds. "You're not stupid, Neimi."

Warmth blooms in Neimi's chest, and all she can reply to that with is, "I love you, you know that?"

Amelia smiles, her eyes creasing at the edges the way they always do when Neimi says something sweet to her. "I love you too. And Neimi, the people in your village will accept you," Amelia says.

Neimi shakes her head, but she doesn't take her eyes off of Amelia. "You can't guarantee that."

"No, I can't. But I think they will."

"Why?" Neimi asks.

"Because you're the best person I know," Amelia states simply, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "They would be crazy not to want you in their life."

A blush spreads across Neimi's cheeks and the warm, fluttery feeling in her chest spreads even more. "I don't — I don't think anyone has ever said something like that to me before."

Amelia's eyebrows crease like she's frustrated, but before Neimi can start worrying, they smooth out. "Well," Amelia says, resting a hand on Neimi's shoulder, "that's a crying shame, because it's true."

They stare at each other for a moment. She can hear a nearby owl coo as the breeze shakes the leaves in the trees above them. There's a full moon tonight, and the way the light catches on Amelia's nose and emphasizes her freckles makes Neimi's heart ache.

"I love you," Neimi says again. "And thank you."

Amelia begins to run a soothing hand down her hair again, and Neimi closes her eyes. Distantly, Neimi realizes that her hands have stopped shaking and her heart has slowed. The last thing she hears before finally falling asleep is a whispered, "I love you too."

In the embrace of her love, Neimi dreams of a bright future.


End file.
